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The world’s first, full-service conservative Internet broadcast networkSat, 10 Dec 2016 01:01:47 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.116302432Sunday morning talking headshttp://hotair.com/archives/2016/12/04/sunday-morning-talking-heads-40/
Sun, 04 Dec 2016 13:01:20 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3934331Trump surrogates aplenty on today’s Sunday shows, but none more important than Mike Pence. He’ll be on “This Week” to talk cabinet appointments, his apparent recent conversion to leftism, and just how far Trump is willing to go to protect his new friends in Taiwan. Also on “This Week”: David Petraeus, who I assume is appearing this morning to campaign publicly for the Secretary of State job, no doubt knowing that Trump pays close attention to “the shows.” Will he become the first cabinet appointee in U.S. history to have to inform his parole officer upon being confirmed for the job? And, er, would he be confirmed for the job?

Elsewhere this morning, Kellyanne Conway will be on “State of the Union” and “Fox News Sunday” to revisit the unpleasantness in Cambridge this week and Newt Gingrich will appear on “Face the Nation,” probably to roll out some lame new jokes about Romney speaking French at fancy restaurants. Also appearing on “Face the Nation” will be Reince Priebus, who may have the newsiest interview of the day. Reince, after all, seems to be the biggest Taiwan advocate in Trump’s inner circle. He was probably a driving force in the phone call with Taiwan’s president, so if anyone on the team will have some insight into policy repercussions next year, it’s likely him.

If none of that grabs you and you’d rather wallow in Democratic misery, Nancy Pelosi will be on “Face the Nation” to discuss her recent elevation to House Minority For Life and Jill Stein will be on “Fox News Sunday” to celebrate the political grift of the century. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 27 Nov 2016 13:01:15 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3933247What better way to start “Secretary of State Decision Week” than with Mitt Romney critic Kellyanne Conway on the Sunday shows? She’ll be on “Meet the Press,” “This Week,” and “State of the Union” this morning to knife Mitt repeatedly for disloyalty, as she did on Thanksgiving morning. One theory of why Conway went after Romney publicly is that she knew it would gin up opposition to him on social media among hardcore Trumpers, and that Trump himself would notice that. Figuring out clever ways to manipulate their boss is a stock in trade of Trump advisors: Paul Manafort supposedly feigned a broken plane this summer to keep Trump meeting with Mike Pence before he made his VP pick, and Reince Priebus reportedly lied to Trump last week in hopes of getting him to cancel his interview with the New York Times by falsely claiming that the paper had changed the terms of the meeting at the last second. Now Conway’s attacking a shortlister for State on her Twitter account to try to steer the president-elect in her preferred direction. Sounds like a healthy way to run an administration.

Reince, who reportedly likes the idea of Romney at State, will be on “Fox News Sunday” himself this morning to field questions about whether Team Trump really wants a groveling apology from Mitt before offering him the job. Hopefully his answer won’t differ too much from Conway’s. If Romney drama doesn’t interest you, though, there’s always Democratic drama: Bernie Sanders will be on “This Week” and “State of the Union” to kick the political corpse of Hillary Clinton while Rep. Tim Ryan, Nancy Pelosi’s challenger for House minority leader, will be on “Meet the Press” and “Fox News Sunday” to lament how out of touch she, and the wider party, are from blue-collar America. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 20 Nov 2016 13:01:17 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3932562Usually the Sunday shows focus on one key theme in their news chatter but this week there are two — and Chuck Schumer’s at the center of both. Theme one: Deals, deals, deals between the incoming Trump White House and Congress. Are Senate Democrats ready to play ball with our new centrist president on policies of mutual interest or will Schumer obstruct at every turn to make Trump’s presidency a failure, starting with his SCOTUS pick early next year? He’ll be on “This Week,” “Meet the Press,” and “Fox News Sunday” to discuss that while Trump’s new chief liaison to Congress, Reince Priebus, will appear on those first two shows plus “State of the Union.” Theme two: How does the Democratic Party crawl out of the rubble and rebuild? And who leads the rebuilding? In addition to Schumer fielding those questions, Rep. Tim Ryan — Nancy Pelosi’s challenger for minority leader in the House — will be on “State of the Union” while DNC hopeful Rep. Keith Ellison will guest on “Face the Nation.” Will Ellison get any pushback on his own record when he inevitably attack Trump as racist and divisive? Probably not, no.

Mike Pence will be on “Face the Nation” as well, along with “Fox News Sunday,” to discuss the cabinet that’s shaping up and what it’s like to be booed at a Broadway musical. And keep your eye on Rand Paul, who’ll follow Pence on “Face the Nation” to explain his opposition to John Bolton or Rudy Giuliani at the State Department. He may provide a clue from his conversations with Senate colleagues whether there’s likely to be 51 votes to block any of Trump’s nominees. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 13 Nov 2016 13:01:23 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3931577Think of the high-ranking Clinton deputies who cleared their schedules for this morning last weekend expecting they’d be talking to Chuck Todd about the coming White House transition and the first 100 days. Hillary went from a figure of world-historic significance (“Who was the first woman president of the United States?”) to an historical footnote (“Who was the first woman to be nominated for president?”) in the span of eight hours on Tuesday night. There aren’t enough sedatives in the world…

Instead this morning brings a Republican victory lap starting on “State of the Union” with Paul Ryan, who’ll explain just how excited he is to be in charge of a nationalist agenda that demands mass deportation for illegals and no mucking around with entitlements, ever. Likely future Attorney General Rudy Giuliani will be on the same show, as well as on “This Week” on ABC, to explain to America that He Is The Law Now, while hopefully soon-to-be chief of staff Kellyanne Conway will appear on “Fox News Sunday.” The most interesting interview, though, might involve a Democrat: Bernie Sanders is the lead guest on “Face the Nation” at a moment when the left is seething with contempt for Hillary for blowing the election. Will Sanders finally stop holding back and say what he really thinks about her or will he take pity on the vanquished? Either way, expect to hear a lot about how Democrats have completely forfeited the white working class to the GOP.

One other interesting guest this morning is Dem Rep. Keith Ellison, the first Muslim ever elected to Congress and a contender to be the next chair of the DNC. The conventional wisdom on conservative political Twitter is that Democrats would be nuts to give him a role like that given how alienated blue-collar whites already are from the party. Could be. A black Muslim as head of the Democratic Party isn’t an … obviously logical reply to white disaffection in the Rust Belt. But don’t sell Ellison short. This comment he made on a Sunday show last year, about a month after Trump jumped into the race, has been making the rounds this week. Note the hearty laughter from the panel. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 06 Nov 2016 13:01:16 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3930408You would think the two nominees might carve out an hour for the Sunday shows in the final two-day push to Election Day, but nope. No Trump this morning and no Hillary (at least as of Saturday afternoon). Although that’s probably less a matter of logistics than prudence. Why take a chance on a tough question in a high-profile television interview at this point when you can stick to scripted events instead?

We’ll have to make do with A-list surrogates. For Republicans, it’s Mike Pence on “Fox News Sunday,” Kellyanne Conway on “State of the Union,” Newt Gingrich on “Meet the Press,” and Reince Priebus on “This Week” and “Face the Nation.” This campaign will end with CEO Steve Bannon having done no Sunday morning appearances and, if I recall correctly, not a single on-camera TV interview of any kind since joining the team. (He did appear on the Breitbart radio show a few days ago.) For Democrats, it’ll be Tim Kaine on “Face the Nation,” campaign manager Robby Mook on “State of the Union,” and John Podesta on “This Week” and “Meet the Press,” where he’ll be asked how it feels to have the world reading his emails and whether he’s really into devil worship or whatever Drudge was leading with on Friday about “spirit cooking.” The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 30 Oct 2016 12:01:25 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3929322The guest list this Sunday morning is less interesting than the change in dynamic over the last 48 hours. Team Trump booked these slots expecting they’d be fielding questions about their poll numbers and his difficult path to 270 in the electoral college. Now they’ll spend the morning on offense over the FBI reopening the investigation into Clinton’s emails. Three of the campaign’s most reliable surrogates are on tap: Mike Pence will be on “Meet the Press” and “Face the Nation,” Kellyanne Conway will be on “State of the Union,” and Reince Priebus will be on “Fox News Sunday.” Reince will probably have the hardest time of it as he’s bound to get a few uncomfortable questions about Trump turning off most of the money tap this month to the RNC. How will Priebus make up the shortfall and keep the ground game operating at full tilt, let alone spread some money around to downballot races?

The lone big-name Democratic surrogate this morning is Joe Biden, who’ll also be on “Face the Nation” to discuss wanting to fight Trump and maybe wanting to fight Anthony Weiner. No doubt there’ll be a few lesser lefties deployed at the last minute to spin the Emailgate eruption too. Maybe John Podesta? He knows something about good email practices, right? The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 23 Oct 2016 12:01:40 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3928268No surprises this morning as the campaign enters its final 16 days. For Team Trump, the surrogates are tried and true: Newt Gingrich will be on “Fox News Sunday,” Reince Priebus will appear on “Face the Nation,” and Kellyanne Conway is set for “State of the Union.” Expect Reince to see some questions about a possible “Trumpocalypse” downballot for Republicans if the polls don’t tighten up, and Conway to be asked about her habit lately of sending out tweets that not-very-subtly criticize her boss’s performance. Trump himself, incidentally, hasn’t been on a Sunday show in weeks.

Team Clinton hasn’t announced its own Sunday show representatives as I write this on Saturday. A dark-horse possibility is Khizr Khan, who became famous at the Democratic convention this year and just reemerged in a gut-punch Clinton ad released two days ago. Having him on one of these shows would be an easy way to push that ad out further into earned media. We’ll see. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 16 Oct 2016 12:01:43 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3927176Give Mike Pence credit for facing the fire this morning. After a week of seamy allegations about sexual assault and Trump goofing on his accusers’ looks, it’d be easy for Pence to beg off appearing on the Sunday shows and farm this clean-up job out to lesser surrogates like Rudy Giuliani and Newt Gingrich. Instead, as of Saturday afternoon, he’s booked for “Meet the Press,” “Face the Nation,” and “Fox News Sunday.” Chuck Todd et al. are going to come right at him for what he said Friday morning about forthcoming evidence that would debunk some of the charges against Trump. Is … this guy’s story the evidence he had in mind? Or, more likely, did the campaign assure Pence early Friday that they had something cooking that would impeach Trump’s accuser without telling him specifically what it was? Now he has to go out there and vouch for Gilberthorpe’s credibility. Oh well. He bought the ticket. Take the ride.

Giuliani and Gingrich are booked too this morning, for “State of the Union” and “This Week,” respectively. For Democrats, it’s VPs present and possibly future: Joe Biden will follow Pence on “Meet the Press” while Tim Kaine is set for “This Week,” “Face the Nation,” and “Fox News Sunday.” A conspicuous omission this morning is Kellyanne Conway. You would think, after a week like this, the campaign would want its most prominent and likable woman surrogate out there helping to put out the fire. Maybe she’ll be a late addition to the schedule. The full line-up is at the AP.

As I write this on Saturday, Reince Priebus is scheduled for “This Week” and “Face the Nation” while Kellyanne Conway is set for “Meet the Press” and “Fox News Sunday.” Whether they decide to show or find a reason to beg off at the last minute (debate prep!), who knows. Democrats will have some of their top surrogates on the air today too, with Tim Kaine set for “State of the Union,” Nancy Pelosi tapped for “Meet the Press,” DNC chief Donna Brazile scheduled for “This Week,” and Clinton campaign chief Robby Mook guesting on “Face the Nation.” I’m … pretty sure all of them are going to show up.

If you’re looking for a Trump ally to go all-in on defending him, your best bet is good ol’ Chris Christie. He’ll be on “State of the Union” after Kaine. The full line-up is at the AP.

Update: As of Sunday morning, it looks like Priebus, Conway, and Christie have all bailed. It’s been left to Rudy Giuliani to serve as all-purpose Trump surrogate, appearing on all five Sunday shows. Yeesh.

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Sun, 02 Oct 2016 12:01:09 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3925039An interesting choice of surrogates by Team Trump this morning. It won’t be Donald himself or Mike Pence out there, nor his go-to spokesmen over the last few months of Kellyanne Conway, Reince Priebus, or Newt Gingrich. It’s Rudy Giuliani, who made news a few days ago when he called Hillary “stupid” for introducing the subject of sexism into the debates. Quote:

“I sure would’ve talked about what she did to Monica Lewinsky, what that woman standing there did to Monica Lewinsky, trying to paint her as an insane young woman when in fact Monica Lewinsky was an intern,” Giuliani said. “The president of the United States, her husband, disgraced this country with what he did in the Oval Office and she didn’t just stand by him, she attacked Monica Lewinsky. And after being married to Bill Clinton for 20 years, if you didn’t know the moment Monica Lewinsky said that Bill Clinton violated her that she was telling the truth, then you’re too stupid to be president.”

Rudy’s going to attack the FBI this morning too for letting Clinton and her cronies off the hook in Emailgate, no doubt, but he might have been tapped by Team Trump because he seems to be the ally who’s most comfortable raising the Clinton sex scandals of the 1990s. If Trump’s planning to go all-in on that subject at next Sunday’s debate, which it seems like he is, then Giuliani might be out there to prime the pump. He’s going to get the story rolling now to pique media interest this week and then Trump will take the baton at the debate. Or at least, that’s how a professional campaign would do it; who knows what Team Trump actually has planned. Giuliani will be on “This Week,” “Meet the Press,” and “State of the Union.”

Hillary’s main surrogate this morning is Bernie Sanders, who’ll spend less time attacking Trump, I’d guess, than begging his millennial fans to hold their noses and vote for her in November. Are there any millennials who actually watch these geriatric news shows? I suppose the YouTube clips that the segments will generate are worth something to Clinton. Sanders will be on “This Week” and “State of the Union.” The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 25 Sep 2016 12:01:32 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3924009A strange development on “Meet the Press” this morning as some guy I’ve never heard of named “Ted Cruz” is the star guest, booked at the last minute to discuss something or other. I assume that whatever he has to say isn’t important enough to justify watching. If you’re looking for Trump surrogates, though, you’ve got three to choose from: Kellyanne Conway will be on “This Week” and “State of the Union” and Mike Pence will be on “Fox News Sunday” and “Face the Nation,” where he’ll be followed by Paul Ryan, who … I guess counts as a Trump surrogate? Perhaps Conway et al. will shed some light on who this “Cruz” character is and why anyone should take him seriously.

Elsewhere, Clinton supporters will be out in force to try to reassure Democrats that their bumbling loser of a nominee isn’t going to blow this election for them despite trying very, very hard to do so. Tim Kaine will be on “Face the Nation,” chief pollster Joel Benenson will be on “Fox News Sunday,” and campaign manager Robby Mook will be on “This Week” and “State of the Union,” where he’ll try and probably fail to answer the most basic policy questions. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 18 Sep 2016 12:01:55 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3922938It’s a contrast in surrogate strategies for the two presidential nominees on this morning’s Sunday shows. Team Trump is spreading the TV appearances around. It’ll be Mike Pence on “This Week,” Kellyanne Conway on “Meet the Press,” Reince Priebus on “Face the Nation,” and Chris Christie on “State of the Union” and “Fox News Sunday.” Every one of them is going to get Birther questions; I hope they’re all on the same page in terms of their talking points. For Team Hillary, it’s all Tim Kaine, all the time: He’ll be on all five shows to make the case to lefties that the end is not nigh and that Typhoid Hillary will figure out a way to win this somehow. Any theories, by the way, on why the Clinton campaign would rather have likable, dad-ish everyman Kaine out there spinning Hillary’s BS on why she didn’t reveal her pneumonia sooner instead of Hillary herself?

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Sun, 11 Sep 2016 12:01:55 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3921894This morning brings a rare pause to presidential chatter on the Sunday shows as they turn to counterterrorism on the 15th anniversary of 9/11. The star guest: DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, who’s booked for “This Week,” “Meet the Press,” “State of the Union,” and “Fox News Sunday.” What about “Face the Nation”? The administration will cover that base too with CIA chief John Brennan. Is America safer now from than it was 15 years ago? Johnson and Brennan will say yes. The truth is more complicated. Is the rest of the western world, most notably continental Europe, safer now than it was then? Hard to see how.

There are no top Clinton surrogates booked as I write this on Saturday, and of the two Trump fans scheduled, one of them — Rudy Giuliani — is obviously lined up today to talk about 9/11 as well, at least in part. The other Trumper is Newt Gingrich, who’ll be on “Fox News Sunday.” The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 04 Sep 2016 12:01:05 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3920963No Trump or Steve Bannon on this morning’s Sunday shows, as has been par for the course since he and Kellyanne Conway were brought aboard. No Hillary Clinton either, which is lucky for her given the 8,000 or so questions she’d have to answer about the FBI’s big holiday weekend news dump. The VPs are both in action this morning, though, with Mike Pence the star guest on “Meet the Press” and Tim Kaine the lead on “This Week.” Two days ago, Kaine probably thought this segment would be the usual talking-points recitation about Trump. Now, after the FBI interview notes were released, he’s on the hook to explain, among other things, why Hillary Clinton can’t recognize classified markings, why her cybersecurity practices at State were so poor, and why Cheryl Mills was allowed to participate in her sitdown with the FBI.

Trump’s atoning for his absence, meanwhile, not just with Pence but with four other top surrogates on tap this morning, each booked to a different show so that he has the entire Sunday-morning spectrum covered. Take your pick: Conway will follow Kaine on “This Week,” Chris Christie will appear on “Face the Nation,” Rudy Giuliani will drop by “State of the Union,” and Ben Carson will be the lead on “Fox News Sunday,” where he’ll talk about Trump’s trip to Detroit this weekend to engage black voters. There are no #NeverTrumpers scheduled but Jeff Flake is awfully close to fitting that description, having said recently that Trump deserves to lose if he continues to run the campaign he’s running — while insisting that he hasn’t ruled out voting for him. He’ll be on “Face the Nation” and “State of the Union” to talk about Trump’s effect on down-ballot races and the failure of Trumpers to oust his colleague John McCain in Arizona. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 28 Aug 2016 12:01:27 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3919938Back when the Paul Manafort/Corey Lewandowski duo were still running the show for Trump, they’d typically divide up Sunday morning between them and each hit one or two different programs. If you expected that to continue with new campaign CEO Steve Bannon and campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, adjust your expectations. Conway did three shows last week while Bannon was nowhere to be found, seemingly replaced as top surrogate by RNC chief Reince Priebus. This week it’s more of the same: Conway, the soft-spoken campaign pro, is back for two shows, “Face the Nation” and “Fox News Sunday,” while Priebus is set for “Meet the Press.” No Trump and still no Bannon, which isn’t surprising after the tabloid revelations of the past few days about his divorce, including allegations by his ex-wife that he didn’t want their children attending school with Jews. It’ll probably be Conway and Priebus on Sunday-show duty for most of the rest of the campaign. At least, that is, until Trump inevitably hires Lewandowski back.

There are several other Trump surrogates booked this morning, one of whom we haven’t seen much of since he was spurned for VP. Chris Christie will be on “This Week,” presumably to defend (or hopefully at least explain) Trump’s immigration shift and his own alleged role in it. Christie did lots of outreach to minority voters during his gubernatorial reelection campaign, a credential he hoped would boost his case for the GOP nomination last year. Presumably he’s planning to use that this morning to defend Trump from Hillary’s alt-right attack. Similarly, Ben Carson will appear after Conway on “Face the Nation” to make the case that Trump will be better for minorities than Clinton would and to tout their upcoming trip together to Detroit to ask for black votes.

Oh yeah: Mike Pence, the guy who’ll be one heartbeat from leading the free world if Trump pulls this off, will also turn up this morning. He’ll be on “State of the Union” talking about various things, likely including touchback amnesty, an idea he championed a decade ago when he was in the House. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 21 Aug 2016 12:01:17 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3918869Big day for Team Trump as new campaign manager Kellyanne Conway makes her Sunday-show debut in her new role. Paul Manafort had acted as chief Trump surrogate on Sunday mornings over the past few months, especially with Trump limiting his own appearances increasingly to more friendly media outlets. That’s Conway’s job now. Conspicuously absent this morning is Steve Bannon, the other new hire and the guy playing Corey Lewandowski to Conway’s Manafort. Back when Paul and Corey were still both on the team, they’d often divide the Sunday shows between them and appear on different programs on the same day to get Trump’s message out. Not so today — it’s all Conway, no Bannon. Go figure that the Trump campaign doesn’t want him out there being pressed on stories like this and some of Breitbart’s greatest alt-right hits over the past two years. Instead Conway will have to answer questions about that, as well as a Media Matters piece that started making the rounds on political Twitter on Friday about some of her many attacks on Trump back when she was working for a Ted Cruz Super PAC. Of particular note: Less than four months ago she said she’d like to see Trump be transparent about his tax returns. Does she still feel that way? I’m guessing no. She’s booked on three shows this morning — “This Week,” “State of the Union,” and “Fox News Sunday.”

Interestingly, while Bannon might be absent, Reince Priebus is not. He’ll also appear on “This Week” and will serve as chief Republican surrogate on “Face the Nation.” I wonder if filling in for Bannon in this capacity will be a regular gig for Reince the rest of the way. We’ll have a better idea next week if he’s back for another multi-show turn. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 14 Aug 2016 12:01:14 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3917847No Trump this morning but his top surrogates will be out in force to do damage control after a week of disastrous state polling and the new shiny-object distractions involving “Second Amendment people” and Obama founding ISIS. Mike Pence will be the lead guest on “Fox News Sunday” while Paul Manafort does his duty on “State of the Union” and Jeff Sessions drops by “This Week.” Hopefully, after the requisite spinning for Trump, they’ll get a chance to mention that the feds are reportedly interested in a new line of possible Hillary Clinton criminality. Speaking of which, Hillary isn’t scheduled to appear this morning either but various anti-Trumpers are booked, most notably Susan Collins on “Face the Nation.” Collins is the most prominent Republican officeholder to date to say she won’t vote for Trump in November. Is she willing to pronounce Trump’s candidacy doomed, or to go a step further and say that the Senate is likely lost? We’ll see.

If you’re bored with the usual Sunday morning fare, there’s always the Olympics. That’s on NBC in lieu of “Meet the Press.” The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 07 Aug 2016 12:01:25 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3916728It’s thin gruel this morning for Sunday brunch as big-name guests are strangely absent, at least according to the schedule as of Saturday afternoon. No Trump, no Pence, no Manafort today: The closest we’ll come to a member of the Trump campaign is Newt Gingrich, who was critical of Trump this week, on “Fox News Sunday.” Hillary won’t be on this morning either, although goofy suburban dad turned vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine will appear on “Meet the Press.” The most potentially newsworthy interview will happen on “State of the Union,” when Jake Tapper sits down with John Kasich. Has there been any thaw between him and Trump? Is the Ohio GOP working hard for the nominee in a state that’s must-win? Is there any chance that Kasich, a centrist who’s term-limited as governor, would switch sides and endorse Hillary? Given how close Ohio is likely to be and how popular Kasich is there, him crossing the aisle could singlehandedly throw the election to Clinton.

Another interesting interview this morning: Jeff Flake, who hasn’t gone #NeverTrump but has been relentlessly critical of the nominee for the past year. He’ll be on “Face the Nation” to address Trump’s refusal to endorse McCain, whether he thinks the recent downturn in the polls is fatal, and the odds of his home state tilting blue this year. It seems hard to believe that Goldwater country would vote for Hillary Clinton (I know, I know, she was a Goldwater fan growing up) but between the large Latino and Mormon minorities there, she’s got a shot.

Tom Cotton will also be on “Face the Nation” and “Fox News Sunday” this morning to explain why he’s comfortable with Trump as nominee despite him being Cotton’s near polar opposite on foreign policy. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 31 Jul 2016 12:01:12 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3915672The end of convention week(s) brings most of the major players to the Sunday shows for spin and counterspin. Trump’s been passing on weekend TV for much of the past two months but he’s back today, sitting down with “This Week” to tell viewers that Hillary is a loser and her convention was sad. Hillary will be on this morning too — on “Fox News Sunday” of all places, where she’ll either accuse Trump of being a stooge for Putin or Putin of being a stooge for Trump. Tim Kaine will be the lead guest on “State of the Union” to discuss his … interesting position on taxpayer-funded abortion while Paul Manafort will bring his special mob-lawyer-ish charm to “Meet the Press.” Even Bernie Sanders gets a Sunday-show reprise today on “Face the Nation,” where he’ll be followed by Trump 2016 emcee Reince Priebus. The only man missing is Mike Pence. Maybe they’re saving him for the August ratings doldrums.

Even the undercard guests this week are newsy. Gen. John Allen, who spoke in Hillary’s favor at the convention, will follow Trump on “This Week” to answer Trump’s charge that he’s a “failed general.” And “Meet the Press” has a point/counterpoint on Putin and hacking lined up between Bond villain Julian Assange and Russian dissident Garry Kasparov. Khizr Khan, who was last seen on MSNBC on Friday night urging Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell to show their patriotism by repudiating Trump, will also be a guest on “State of the Union.” The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 24 Jul 2016 12:01:32 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3914450I assume newly minted Clinton crony-in-chief Tim Kaine is the star guest this morning but he’s not booked anywhere yet as I write this on Saturday afternoon. Maybe Hillary will hold him back so that he’s formally introduced to the public at this week’s convention? We’ll see. One thing about the Kaine pick: It signals a surprising amount of confidence within Team Clinton that this election is an easy lay-up the rest of the way requiring no easy panders to goose turnout among the Democratic base. They could have appealed to black voters with Cory Booker, to Latinos with Julian Castro or Tom Perez, or to hardcore anti-Hillary progressives with Elizabeth Warren. Kaine is the guy you choose when you think you’re on a glide path to victory and want as little turbulence as possible. Why Hillary thinks this, I don’t know: Trump’s odds of winning the race continue to climb with a convention bounce likely still to come. If liberals end up staying home in November out of disaffection with the ticket, passing on Warren or another progressive bombthrower like Sherrod Brown will be seen as one of Hillary’s big mistakes. Oh well.

Elsewhere, Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort will be on “This Week” to explain why inviting Ted Cruz to speak and then lustily booing him was a smart idea for a “unity” convention and also why it’s no big deal that Trump’s campaign reeks of Kremlin associations, starting with Manafort himself. And Donald Trump Jr will appear on “State of the Union” to discuss his post-convention-speech status as the Donald Trump conservatives wish the party had nominated and whether he’s planning to run for office in New York. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 17 Jul 2016 12:01:10 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3913336It’s a theme day for the Sunday shows as they focus on two failed coups, one the lame move against Erdogan in Turkey and the other the even lamer move against Trump on the GOP Rules Committee. RNC chief Reince Priebus will be on “Face the Nation,” “State of the Union,” and “Fox News Sunday” to describe what it’s like for the Republican establishment to have finally found an opponent it can defeat and when exactly he decided he was all-in on turning the GOP into America’s National Front. More interestingly, jilted VP candidate Newt Gingrich will follow Priebus on “Face the Nation,” putting on a brave face amid bitter disappointment. How bitter will he be? News leaked yesterday, coincidentally, that despite refusing to release his tax returns, Trump insisted that Gingrich provide his own as part of the VP vetting. Was that Newt leaking to hurt Trump? If so, I doubt he’ll retaliate any further. There’s probably still a cabinet position waiting for him if he’s a good soldier for the rest of the campaign.

Say, where’s Mike Pence this morning? I know that “60 Minutes” was promised the first joint interview with him and Trump but there’s nothing stopping Pence from going solo this a.m. Expect him as a late addition (unscheduled as of Saturday afternoon), most likely on “Meet the Press.” Either way, Paul Manafort will be on “Fox News Sunday” to deny, deny, deny that he had anything to do with painting his boss into a corner by leaking Pence as the pick before it was finalized. And if none of that interests you, CIA chief John Brennan will be on “State of the Union” and “Fox News Sunday” to discuss the terror attack in Nice and how the CIA totally missed the abortive coup against Erdogan in Turkey. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 10 Jul 2016 12:01:57 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3912378Political blather moves to the backburner today as the Sunday shows grapple with the ambush attack on police in Dallas and the Sterling/Castile shootings earlier this week. Dallas PD Chief David Brown will be the lead guest on “State of the Union” to update America on the investigation of Micah Johnson and any accomplices and to explain what it’s like facing off against a lunatic who murders five cops and then starts … singing:

A police source told KXAS-TV (NBC5) that Johnson was laughing and singing during the standoff inside the parking garage. He didn’t appear nervous and told police he’d been working out in preparation for Thursday’s assault.

Brown will also undoubtedly be asked about the “bomb robot.” Also Dallas-related this morning: NAACP President Cornell William Brooks will be on “Face the Nation” and Jesse Jackson will be on “Fox News Sunday” to discuss the attack, Sterling and Castile, and whether the “climate of hate” criticism typically thrown at the right means “Black Lives Matter” bears some responsibility for this attack. Spoiler: No.

No appearances by Donald Trump are scheduled as I write this on Saturday morning, which is in keeping with his team’s alleged new “don’t let him talk so much” strategy towards the media. Old pro Paul Manafort will be on “Face the Nation,” though, to undoubtedly deny the claim that Trump’s being muzzled and to insist that they’ve got the nomination in the bag in Cleveland despite rumbles from #NeverTrump delegates this week that something might be brewing. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 03 Jul 2016 12:01:02 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3911584A strange line-up for a Sunday morning that’s mere weeks away from two presidential conventions: Neither the nominees themselves nor any of their top surrogates are booked as guests as I write this on Saturday afternoon. The biggest name on the list is former nominee John McCain, who’ll be on “Face the Nation” with sidekick Lindsey Graham to talk about … something. Probably the idea that Orlando, Istanbul, and Bangladesh prove we need 500,000 American troops in Syria tomorrow. If you simply must get your presidential fix this morning, Gary Johnson will appear on “State of the Union” to discuss why he’s polling almost but not quite as well as a giant meteor strike that would end human life on Earth.

There are a few B-list veepstakes candidates on this morning too, in case you’re interested in checking out people who might conceivably be, but almost certainly won’t be, the next VP. Sen. Sherrod Brown will be on “This Week,” Sen. Cory Booker will be on “State of the Union,” and Labor Secretary Tom Perez will be on “Meet the Press.” Brown is a true-blue progressive from Ohio; Booker is the Senate’s only black Democrat and might help Hillary hold together the Obama coalition; Perez could conceivably help with Latinos, although antipathy to Trump is her best friend within that group. Her short list appears to be down to Tim Kaine, Elizabeth Warren, and Julian “Who?” Castro, though, so these dudes are dark horses at best. Tom Cotton, who’s been kicked around as a potential Trump VP, will also be on “Meet the Press,” although I can’t figure out why people think he would be a good match for Trump. He’s a veteran, yes, but he has all of 18 months’ experience in the Senate, he’s a super-hawk where Trump is more isolationist, and he’s … 39 years old. The last thing Trump needs to calm doubts about whether he’s prepared for the presidency is a veep nearly half his age with not much more governing experience than Trump himself has.

How about Rick Santorum as a dark-horse VP for Trump, though? He’s been a champion for working-class families throughout his presidential runs, years before Trump became Mr Populism. (Santorum praised Trump’s blue-collar message in an op-ed just a few days ago, in fact.) He’s from Pennsylvania, where Trump is competitive and which he almost certainly needs to win to have any chance at a national victory. He’d bring social-conservative credibility to the ticket and he has two full Senate terms’ worth of governing experience. Granted, he’s unpopular nationally, but Trump seems dead set on choosing a VP whom people hate. Chris Christie’s job approval in New Jersey is in the toilet right now whereas Newt Gingrich’s favorable rating as of 2012 was, um, 26/61. Besides, Trump himself is pulling unfavorable numbers around 60 percent. What harm can a disliked VP do when you’re already dragging around a boulder like that? The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 26 Jun 2016 12:01:29 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3910645There are no Brexit-themed guests scheduled for the Sunday shows as I write this on Saturday afternoon but they’ll be there in spades his morning, no doubt. Regular bookings are done a few days in advance; it tells you a lot about how confident American media was that “Remain” would win that they didn’t bother lining up big names from the UK in advance for post-referendum commentary. Keep an eye out for Tony Blair, as he’s probably the world’s most famous “Remain” supporter (apart from David Cameron) and has already signaled his willingness to push back on nationalism in major media forums with a Times op-ed this weekend:

Those in the political center were demonized as out-of-touch elites, as though the people leading the insurgency were ordinary folks — which, in the case of the Brexit campaign, is a laughable proposition. The campaign made the word “expert” virtually a term of abuse, and when experts warned of the economic harm that would follow Brexit, they were castigated as “scaremongers.” Immigrants were described as a bunch of scroungers coming to grab Britons’ jobs and benefits when, in reality, the recent migrants from Eastern Europe contribute far more in taxes than they take in welfare payments. And besides, immigration to Britain from outside the European Union will not be affected by the referendum decision.

The political center has lost its power to persuade and its essential means of connection to the people it seeks to represent. Instead, we are seeing a convergence of the far left and far right. The right attacks immigrants while the left rails at bankers, but the spirit of insurgency, the venting of anger at those in power and the addiction to simple, demagogic answers to complex problems are the same for both extremes. Underlying it all is a shared hostility to globalization.

Elsewhere, Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort will be on “Meet the Press” to dodge questions about Corey Lewandowski’s firing and trumpet that Brexit heralds the age of Trump. Likely Trump VP Newt Gingrich will echo the same point on “Fox News Sunday” while Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell will appear on “This Week” to do his usual “I don’t like much of anything Trump says or does but I’m supporting him anyway” two-step. Finally, Marco Rubio will explain to “Face the Nation” just how lucky he feels to be facing either an obvious fraud in Patrick Murphy or an insufferable far-left kook in Alan Grayson in his new bid for reelection this fall. The full line-up is at the AP.

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Sun, 19 Jun 2016 12:01:32 +0000http://hotair.com/?p=3909720The Sunday shows were swamped by breaking news of the Orlando attack last weekend so the predictable chatter about gun-grabbing had to wait. They’ll make amends this morning with AG Loretta Lynch, who’ll be on all five programs to explain why due process is overrated when it comes to Second Amendment rights and to estimate how many red flags the FBI missed in failing to stop Omar Mateen. NRA chief Wayne LaPierre will argue the other side — on one show, “Face the Nation,” not five. Dianne Feinstein, lead sponsor of the Kafkaesque new Democratic gun-control bill targeting people who used to be on a terror watch list, will also appear on that program.

If you’re more interested in the election, Paul Ryan will sit down with Chuck Todd on “Meet the Press” to reiterate that, yes, he’s supporting Trump for president and, no, other Republicans shouldn’t feel obliged to do so. An endorsement worth its weight in gold! Trump himself is absent from the schedule this morning but campaign co-managers Paul Manafort and Corey Lewandowski will appear on “State of the Union” and “Fox News Sunday,” respectively. Sunday morning has become something of a regular gig for them; I wonder if that’ll continue through the fall or if they’re filling a niche temporarily that’ll eventually be handed over to Trump’s VP pick. Newt Gingrich is a natural for this role if he ends up being selected. The full line-up is at the AP.